Have you ever been in love? So much so that you could hardly breathe. I never thought I would ever get to that place in my life. I was socially awkward growing up. So I really didn’t talk all that much. But I always knew that was much more than what I had. I knew that if I could learn what to do, then I would do it. When I got to college, I took a speech course. I wanted to learn to be able to speak out more. I found out that most people were in the same boat that I was in. Then I didn’t feel so bad. That’s where I fell in love. Sometimes I thought I would die, because it hurt so much. Love does hurt just like a beating. Something that is so invisible, can physically hurt so much. When I met the Lord, God put a love in my heart for people. People that no one would even look at. God would have me to love them unconditionally. I would work with derelicts, bums, alcoholics, drug addicts and the socially acceptable. This one friend of mine lost her husband and God had me to be her friend. I loved her unconditionally. She needed to know that God was there and working in her behalf. The only problem was that I fell in love with her. But she was not for me. God had chosen someone else for me. It hurt for long time. But I was still willing to love people despite the pain. Love carries with it pain. When I look at the cross, I see the pain that Jesus went through for me. God is love. He loves everyone. All of His creation is very precious to Him.
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I was not always willing to do things that were different. In some ways I still am not willing. I was afraid of getting out there on my own and failing. I always saw the possibility of things that could done and I was genuinely interested. What would happen more often than not, people would challenge me. Then I would do it on a dare. I tell you the truth that is the hard way to do things. I had a job by the time I was 13 years old. I kept it all through high school. I worked 6 days a week. In college, I carried 12 hours a semester and worked 40 hours a week. I was doing fine until the fraternity and girls get in the way. That is when it all went sideways. I became somewhat willing to go on an adventure. When I got out of the Air Force, I traveled the country. I wanted to see America. I did for almost a year. But things have a way of catching up to you. I came home to straighten out my life. Everybody was trying to help, but nothing seemed to work. I started praying asking God for help. He sent 2 men to invite me to join their business. I would listen to these men talking about their life in Christ. It interested me and I listened. After about 3 months of listening, I knew that I had to do something. One of the men invited me to his church. I went. It was strange to me. I just listen and look at all the people. The preacher stopped in the middle of his sermon and said hello, anybody out there. I didn’t know then but that was God talking to me. I turned to the pastor and I heard, what more do you want? I knew that I was at the right place and the right time. And that is how it has been. God talks to me and I listen. He said, if you are willing, I will do the rest. And so I have been willing to do what God says all my life.
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God says that He isn’t willing that any person should perish, but that all should come to the saving knowledge of Jesus. He also says that the end of the world should not come until everybody has heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. Then He says who can separate us from the love of God? The answer is no one. Is there a picture starting to develop in your head? God also says that we are healed by the beating that Jesus took before the cross. Again He says that at the cross our sins were paid for. God made a way back to Him by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Then He says that He takes our confessed sins and throws them into the sea of forgetfulness never to be remembered again. Then God says that we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus. God also says that if we have the faith the size of a mustard seed, we can say to the mountain be thy removed and it will be done by God Himself. There is a real picture developing here. Can you see it? God says that He isn’t a man that He should lie. He also says have I not said it and will I not do it. God also says if you believe you are a son of God. He goes on to say that He gives the power to become a son of God. God says that the goodness of God leads you to salvation. Have you felt that leading before? I will pray that you will again. God also says that no man comes to the Father but by Jesus Christ. What I just wrote is a snapshot of what God has for you. It is like the photos of my clouds. You have to look closely to see all the details. What you can see is amazing. So do what God says, draw near to Him and He will draw near to you.
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Depending on who you ask is depending on the answer. The word gospel means truth. But what is the trust according to whom. Do you know why there are so many different denominations? Everybody has different opinions. And sometimes their opinions get in the way of the gospel. Do you know that the entire bible, both Old and New Testament, was written by orthodox Jews? When God said that they were the chosen people, He wasn’t kidding. In the scripture it says to the Jew first and then to the gentile. God was very specific in choosing the Hebrews. They were and are followers of God. God never made the gospel difficult or hard to understand. You have to understand we are talking about man. Everything has to be explained on the most basic level for man to get it. What was God’s laws for Adam and Eve? Everything in the Garden of Eden was theirs and they couldn’t eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. That is as basic and a simple law to follow. You know what the shame of it was that they didn’t listen to God and lost paradise. It finally came down to 613 laws and if they broke one, they were lost. Guess how many people made it into the kingdom of heaven? Even at the worst time in Israel, God always had a people who followed. Jesus came and refined the laws so man could again live like God wanted man to live in the first place. Guess what? Everybody has their own opinion. The gospel is very simple, love God with your whole heart and mind and love your neighbor as yourself. When this happens the whole world will be a paradise.
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Most people says that this world is real. Strangely enough, scientist says that the world is made up of molecules flying so fast that at a point in time they will fly apart. How they came to this conclusion I don’t know. But they are right. This world is temporary. It will disappear. How many people do you know that are banking on the wealth of this world. I look at them and I want to cry. They have no idea what is and really going on. Jesus told a parable about the wealth of this world. He said was talking about entering into the city at night. The city will close its main gate and lock it for the night. The only way to enter the city at night is through a small gate called the eye of the needle. Jesus said the only way for a camel to enter into the eye of the needle is to unload all of its wealth outside the city. And He said this is the only way to enter into heaven. Jesus was saying that we can’t take anything to heaven but ourselves. God has given us tools to use on this earth while we are here. Money is one of those tools. It is not only for our basic needs, but also for the kingdom of God. You see you can’t take it with you, so put it where it can do the most good. Reality can seem so elusive. But when you know what is real, it will give you assurance in God. Because the only thing that is real is God Himself. Put your trust and faith in God and found out what is real.
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I have seen so many things happen because of fear. People are stopped in their tracks. President Franklin Roosevelt wrote about the 4 freedoms. One of them was the freedom from fear. The United States was engaged in WWII and it wasn’t going very well. Fear can do many horrible things to a people. When fear grips a person’s heart, it can separate them from other people. If they are afraid of rejection, they will separate themselves and it will create loneness. Which is a tormenting spirit. One of the horrible things of war is what happens to children. In WWII, it was documented a small child had lost his parents. He had been crying for three days until he stopped all together. All he was doing was shaking. The fear of separation had gripped his heart. The Americans that found him said that it took months of attention for the child to come around. Fear is as real as we are. The bible says that people are in bondage all their lives because of the fear of death. We are social beings. We need to have people and relationships around us. Without them loneness and violent can grip us. Antisocial behavior is all about being alone. I know what it is like to have death grip you. And by the grace of God, death was defeated. I am not speaking from conjecture. I have experienced all this personally. When I found God, the world changed for me. I found someone that loved me just because I existed. Then I found in the bible where God said, who can separate us for the love of God. In Romans 8:38,39 it says, “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (KJV).
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For years now the struggle against authority has been raging. I can’t say that rebellion began in the 1960’s, but it came of age in America. I grew up in a conservative home. My parents tried to teach me self-constraint. It was like water on a duck’s back. It didn’t really take effect until my rebellion started to cost me. I will tell you the truth, it cost me a lot. I wouldn’t listen until I was almost 30 years old. That is because I was so close to death. I had burned down everything that was good and true in my life. I finally figured out that my parents weren’t as stupid as I thought they were. Each person has to come to that reality or they will lose their life, literally. Authority is portrayed as something useless. You don’t have to go far in America to see people who have lost the constraint of authority. All you have to look at is the mess in Missouri and Maryland. Then you can look at people who believe in authority in South Carolina after the church shooting. In the past few weeks there have been 9 police officers killed in the line of duty in America. If you don’t recognize what this whole plan is I will tell you. If is a plan to discredit God Himself. Without God in charge, who will fix the problems of man? You can see for yourself the failed plans of our government to fix anything. Every great civilization has fallen because of the lack of God in their lives. Soon Christianity will be outlawed in America. What will happen is the fall of America. The church will have to go underground just like the 1st century Christians did. There was a Roman Centurion who went to Jesus to ask for help. His servant was sick. As the soldier approached Jesus, he began to ask for help. Jesus said I will go to your house. The soldier said, I am a man under authority. All I have to say is to do this or that and it is done. He ask Jesus just to speak the word and his servant would be healed. Jesus said, I haven’t found so great a faith in all of Israel. You can’t be in authority without being under authority.
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Everybody wants to be different. They have different hair, cars, clothes or manner of speaking. It sometimes funny to see how far people will go to be different. Most of it is just fads. But everyone has a story that needs to be told. You see when your story is told, you make a difference in this world. It like a tale being told. It is funny how some authors are not recognized until they are dead. The same happens to a lot of people. Some are never recognized. But people go on being different. It sad that people think they will be ordinary if they don’t do something outrageous. Where are all the people that did spectacular things in their lives? Most of them are living quiet lives with their families. I’m not saying don’t be different. What I am saying is affect the world around you for the good. If you are a farmer, teach people to grow food. If you are a businessman, help those that are struggling. Whatever you are doing, do something about the needs that you see in your community. Everyone has a story that needs to be told. You have a story and don’t think for a minute it isn’t worthy of being told. God doesn’t make junk. Man makes junk out of lives. I just have to laugh at the things people do to be different. It always makes me realize how precious in God’s sight His people are. You see we are all the same, even though we look different. For God isn’t a respecter of persons. Everyone is the same to God. He looks on the heart, not the outward appearance. And we are the image and likeness of God. So differences don’t really matter to God and shouldn’t to us. So do unto others as you would have others do to you.
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One of the scariest things in my life was the unknown. When I graduated from High School I began to realize that I was leaving the comfort of home and going into the unknown. I had a frown on my face. As I passed my mother on the way out, she said put a smile on your face. It was hard to smile because I was afraid. If there is one thing that I have learned on my journey through life is that everything changes. It changes every day and every minute of that day. It kind of genders insecurity. You have to learn who you are and like yourself. Sometimes people take the wrong road and get struck in life that is destroying them. I have found that anyone who believes that they know everything and which way to go are fools. Don’t follow them because they will destroy themselves and anyone who will follow. I have only found one person who knew which way to go and was willing to lead me there. His name is Jesus. You see I was one of those people who lead people astray. I know from personal experience that it was the wrong way. It was by the grace of God that I came back from hell and have survived my stupidity. I can’t say that my journey was always successful. There were many valley experiences. I had to go through the valley of death so I would be able to see the life that God has for me. I didn’t like going through the valley, but it was for my good. Even when one of my sons was dying, I knew that God would lead me through. I put my trust and faith into His hands, and my son was healed in 4 days. I have had prays answered immediately. Then the longest time for a pray to be answered was 22 years. In all that time I had to walk through the unknown with only trust and faith in my heavenly Father. What God did for me, He will do for you. All you have to do is ask and He will answer.
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Lord Baltimore received a charter from Charles I to colonize the new world. The land that was given to Lord Baltimore was between Pennsylvania and Virginia. Ever since the time of Henry VIII, the Catholics in England didn’t fare so well. Lord Baltimore wanted a place where Catholics could go for religious freedom. Lord Baltimore II finally sent colonists in 1634. That was three years before my 9th great grandfather landed in Boston. He was coming to the new world for the same reason, religious freedom. Although my grandfather was a protestant, he wasn’t in the Church of England. The English church didn’t want these French upstarts preaching their brand of Christianity. So many of them left England and went to America. The Catholics in Maryland established themselves. They had more problems with Protestants then they did with the Indians. They made Maryland profitable. They grew tobacco. They didn’t stop Protestants from immigrating into Maryland. Although the government officials were all Catholics, they still had problems with the Protestants. Isn’t it funny that everyone came to America for freedom and many didn’t want to extend it to everyone? Especially where money was involved. There are four location in the United States that are predomitly Catholic. There are south Louisiana, Boston, New York and Maryland. I was raised catholic. They have a strong sense of community and compassion for people. They are willing to help people. Even today there are feeding programs around the world. Today this saying is made into a joke but is very true. When a young man would bring home a girl to meet his parent, his mother would ask who is your mother, are you catholic and can you make a roux. People came for religious freedom, which is in jeopardy today in America. In John 8:36, it says, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
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